𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐡 ||| 𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐯 (𝟑)

[ 𝟑 ]

A/N: Most italicized words are in French or Mand. The translations will be in the comments. This applies to future chapters as well.

The familiar scent of coffee entered my nostrils as I sat down next to a window. It was lunch break and as Ningning said, the cafe wasn't too far from my workplace.

"Puis-je m'asseoir ici?" a silvery voice spoke in French.

I glanced up and met those familiar alluring eyes once again. I assumed he was asking if he could sit here so I nodded as he sat down with his drink.

"Avez-vous nouveau ici ? Je ne t'ai jamais vu avant."

People in France speak so fast I wish I had paid more attention in French class. He must've sensed my confusion and switched to English.

"Are you new to France?"

"Yes, I just moved a couple of days ago," I replied.

"I see. Makes sense."

I look at him with a confused expression.

"I mean, it makes sense why you don't speak French since you just moved."

"I do speak French, just not fluently."

"Did you take classes?"

I nodded and explained, "Yeah, but it's been a few years and I never really practiced with anyone so my French skills are fading."

"Oh, that's relatable. My Mandarin skills are getting worse too because I haven't spoken it since high school."

"Oh, you took Mandarin classes?"

"Yeah, just for fun. Everyone said it's a hard language and said I would suffer so I wanted to prove them wrong."

I chuckled and added, "Well, I speak Mandarin, I can definitely help you out."

"Sure, and I can help you out with French."

"Sounds perfect," I sipped my coffee. "By the way, I forgot to introduce myself."

"Well, since I'm helping you practice your French-speaking skills, you should start by introducing yourself in French."

"Bonjour," I glanced up at him. "Je m'appelle Mingxia Wang. J'ai..."

He gave a reassuring smile.

"Vingt-et-un ans...?"

"You're twenty-one?"

I nodded and asked him for feedback.

"It was accurate and straight out of the textbook."

"Merci. Now, it is your turn to introduce yourself in Chinese."

He cleared his throat and spoke up.

"Nǐ hǎo. Wǒ jiào Ten, jīnnián èrshíwǔ suì. Hěn gāoxìng rènshí nǐ, Qīn'ài de."

I blinked a couple of times in surprise.

"Wow...that was really good."

He smiled and thanked me.

"Your name's Ten?"

He nodded.

"Interesting name."

"Thank you? I was not expecting that comment."

"What were you expecting?"

"Some weird joke, like, 'Are you from Tennessee?' or 'Oh, do you have nine older siblings' or something weirder."

"Well," I paused. "Do you?"

"No, just one older sister. And she's not named after a number."

"Okay. But I didn't mean it in a bad way interesting."

"I hope not," the right corner of his mouth curved upwards in a smirk.

"I really didn't!" I exclaimed as he laughed. "I-"

"I know, I know, I was just messing with you."

He grinned showing his perfect white teeth. His smile was cute.

"Well, since you're new here, I should show you around the city. Are you free right now?"

I shook my head as a no and pulled out my phone.

"My lunch break ends in about...ten minutes," I glanced up.

"Ah. What about this weekend?"

"Sure," I smiled. "What time?"

"I'll text you. Here's my phone number."

He pulled out a napkin from his pocket and passed it to me.

"Thank you."

"Yeah, no problem," he responded and checked his watch. "I should get going. It was nice meeting you."

"Same here."

We said our goodbyes and returned our dishes to their appropriate place before exiting the cafe. I walked back to my workplace and put my hands in my pocket, smiling as I felt the folded napkin.